Global Migrant

In the many forms that I have to fill for the Japanese bureaucracy there is a field called in English "Home Address". I wrote my home address in Scotland in this box. It turned out to be WRONG. My home address cannot be used as my home address.

This is because I have POLISH nationality. The "Home Address" in English turns out to be a translation of the Japanese phrase "Address in the Home Country". So this must be address in Poland.

And what if I do not live in Poland any more?

Well, for Japanese understanding that is not possible. I would have to leave that field blank. But what would that mean? Would that mean that I am homeless in my own country? Everyone has to have an address. And according to one Japanese minister, homeless people in Japan do not exist. Apparently. (see hereand scroll down to 11. Blatant Lies)

Not having an address in home country is impossible. Maybe you could give address of family that still lives there? the clerk suggested. Ok, my parents still live there. I hesitantly agreed. This was a cause of some strange looks. "What? Her parents still live there and she says it is not her home address? There must be something wrong with her. Of course her parents address is her home address, is she trying to cheat here or what?" (I can only imagine that these were the thoughts of the clerk as she was giving me the strange look).

I have read that many young Japanese people live with their parents until they marry, and many of the married couples continue to live with their parents, so maybe it is indeed beyond their comprehension. Or maybe it is just the inflexibility and lack of imagination where forms have to be filled in absolutely correctly.

This brings me to the initial question in the title of this blog. Who am I? How do I define my sense of nationality with two major influences in my life so far, Polish and Scottish/British? Am I a Global Migrant? Am I a Citizen of the World?...

...After giving it some though last week I decided I am European. I am not a Citizen of the World, because I have never been to any of the Americas or Australia, and I do not feel at home in Asia. But I think I could live in most of the European countries and still feel at home, even if I had to speak a foreign language. Maybe it is because in Europe most countries share the common Christian and Roman roots? And most people know a lot about the other countries’ history, because it was entangled with their own.

Yes, I have decided I am an European Citizen.

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I'm like a bird, I'll only fly away
I don't know where my soul is
I don't know where my home is